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Trump Thanks Putin for Kicking US Diplomats Out of Russia

President Donald Trump said Thursday he would "thank" Russian President Vladimir Putin for ousting U.S. diplomats from Russia, saying he was "thankful" for reducing the federal government's payroll. The ouster followed U.S. imposing sanctions on Russia in response to Kremlin interference in the 2016 presidential election. It was not clear how Putin's retaliatory expulsion might reduce the payroll of the U.S. government. (Published Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017)

President Donald Trump Thursday said he's grateful for his Russian counterpart's decision to kick U.S. diplomats out of his country, CNBC reported.

Of Russian President Vladimir Putin's retaliatory expulsion of U.S. diplomats, Trump said, "I want to thank him because we're trying to cut down our payroll."

Trump made the payroll comment to reporters Thursday at his New Jersey golf club, where the president is taking a 17-day "working vacation."

It is not clear how the Russian president kicking out U.S. diplomats would remove them from the U.S. payroll.